Kollywood !!!

Kamal Haasan

In an era where people, in an attempt to recreate magic, tend to completely miss the main essence of films they are trying to remake, one man gets the soul right more often than not. His screenwriting career has had several bouts of both legal and illegal plagiarisms but one thing common about everything he remakes is the intelligence factor. He has an uncanny knack of always coming up with smart adaptations of already tried and tested stories. I am talking about none other than the legendary Kamal Haasan.

With his next film being the remake of last year's Bollywood hit ‘A Wednesday’, here is a look back at the various movies Kamal has remade/copied and the various ideas he's intelligently adapted.

1) Kurudhi Punal / Drohkal - As they say, we should always start from the best. This is one rare remake, where the maker of the original came out in public and acknowledged that the remake was much better than the original. Not just Govind Nihlani but also the association which sends Indian movies to the Oscars was completely awed at the way this film was shot.

2) Vasool Raja MBBS / Munnabhai MBBS - "This movie did not take me anywhere. I did it for friendship's sake" is what Kamal had to say about Vasool raja. I agree. The original was definitely ahead but the remake wasn't a bad one either. It did have its own moments of magic coupled with some very witty humor thanks to the great language that Tamil is.

3) Virumandi / Rashomon, Life of David Gale - Though brilliantly conceived and executed, this film at its release received some criticism from a few quarters which pointed out that the film misses out on its main aim – talking about the journalist interviewing a capital punishment accused. This aspect and only this aspect of the film is actually taken from the Kevin Spacey starrer - Life of David Gale. The screenplay is taken from the Akira Kurosawa classic - Rashomon. This can't even be called a copy because the Rashomon screenplay is so famous that it is now called "The Rashomon Effect", which is ‘employed’ as a screenwriting technique.

4) Anbe Sivam / Trains, planes and automobiles - Well this is not even an inspiration. Anbe Sivam just takes the ‘two people with opposing views traveling together’ concept and beautifully mixes it with its own emphasis on love, God, communism, humor, charity, art and what not...

5) Thenali / What About Bob? - The entire plot is lifted in from the Bill Murray starrer but is credited to Crazy Mohan. A few scenes especially the interview sequence is completely lifted. But here again, Kamal improvises with some spectacular original acting like in the long “ellam siva bayam” dialogue where he makes us laugh first and then makes us weep. Only a few actors can do that through a single dialogue. Kamal is one of them.

6) Avvai Shanmukhi / Mrs Doubtfire-Tootsie - Though the plot is a straight lift from the Robin Williams comedy- Mrs. Doubtfire, the original inspiration for this role is from one of Kamal's favorite actor’s movie - Dustin Hoffman's Tootsie. Kamal delivers an unforgettable performance as the super maami in this complete rib tickler. Crazy is at his best too.

7) Sathi Leelavathi / She Devil - Not exactly a copy or even an inspiration but both films deal with a very common issue. The stress in Sathi Leelavathi however is intelligent humor unlike the completely slapstick She Devil. And the Coimbatore accent from Kamal completely steals the show.

8) Devar Magan / The Godfather - Intelligent script writing at its peak. To take the ‘son rises’ soul of the Godfather and effortlessly insert it into a magnificent rural setting is no mean task and Kamal the writer breezes through it.

Trivia - It was a bet between two friends on who will remake the Godfather first. Mani won the bet, but Kamal made the better remake.

9) Sathya / Arjun - Suresh Krishna's brutal portrayal of the angry young unemployed is actually a scene by scene take from the Sunny Deol starrer. The romance track in Sathya however was much more watchable thanks to some exceptional performances from Kamal and the super elegant Amala.

10) Enakul Oruvan / Karz - The mutual admiration between Kamal and Rishi Kapoor is obvious, both being masters of romance in their own right. Kamal liked Rishi's Karz and decided to star in its Tamil remake yielding some decent results at the box office.

11) Raaja Parvai / Butterflies are free, Graduate - The Hoffman fan in Kamal rises to the fore again, this time dedicating an entire climax to him through his first screenplay- Raaja Parvai. But the rest of the story is taken from this classic called ‘Butterflies are free’ - A neat attempt at remaking.

12) Magalir Mattum / Nine to Five - An unfortunate brutal rip off credit to Kamal's pen. I am not really sure about what was in his mind at this point of time. Though he tried his best to make the movie as Indian as possible.

Some other mild inspirations - Nammavar (To sir, with love), Panchathantiram (Things gone wrong), Nala Damayanti (Don’t remember the movie's name) have mild tinges of inspirations.

Movies remade from Kamal's - Well there are plenty of them, a very high number indeed. Many of Anil Kapoor's works are taken from Kamal movies like Virasat (Devar Magan), Eshwar (Swathi Muthyam) etcetera. An article on this is coming up soon.

So let us hope film makers like Jayam Raja take the cue from Kamal Haasan and make some intelligent adaptations instead of indulging in costume remaking.

Carry On!!!

Carry On!!

It's easy to fight when everything's right,
And you're mad with the thrill and the glory;
It's easy to cheer when victory's near,
And wallow in fields that are gory.
It's a different song when everything's wrong.
When you're feeling infernally mortal;
When it's ten against one, and hope there is none,
Buck up, little soldier, and chortle:

Carry on! Carry on!
There isn't much punch in your blow.
You're glaring and staring and hitting out blind;
You're muddy and bloody, but never mind.
Carry on! Carry on!
You haven't the ghost of a show.
It's looking like death, but while you've a breath,
Carry on, my son! Carry on!

And so in the strife of the battle of life
It's easy to fight when you're winning;
It's easy to slave, and starve and be brave,
When the dawn of success is beginning.
But the man who can meet despair and defeat
With a cheer, there's a man of God's choosing;
The man who can fight to Heaven's own height
Is the man who can fight when he's losing.

Carry on! Carry on!
Things never were looming so black.
But show that you haven't a cowardly streak,
And though you're unlucky you never are weak.
Carry on! Carry on!
Brace up for another attack.
It's looking like hell, but - you never can tell;
Carry on, old man! Carry on!

There are some who drift out in the deserts of doubt,
And some who in brutishness wallow;
There are others, I know, who in piety go
Because of a Heaven to follow.
But to labor with zest, and to give of your best,
For the sweetness and joy of the giving;
To help folks along with a hand and a song;
Why, there's the real sunshine of living.

Carry on! Carry on!
Fight the good fight and true;
Believe in you mission, greet life with a cheer;
There's big work to do, and that's why you are here.
Carry on! Carry on!
Let the world be the better for you;
And at last when you die, let this be your cry:
Carry on, my soul! Carry on!

Don't Quit!!!

Don't Quit

When things go wrong as they sometimes will
When the road you're trudging seems all up hill.
When funds are low and the debts are high.
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh.
When care is pressing you down a bit.
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns.
As everyone of us sometimes learns.
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out:

Don't give up though the pace seems slow -
You may succeed with another blow.
Success is failure turned inside out -
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt.
And you never can tell how close you are.
It may be near when it seems so far:
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit
It's when things seem worst that you must not QUIT.

My Love !!!!

My Love !!!!

Your whispers are gentle echoes
that sway ardent winds of harmony
and in the symphony of life

each word is wrapped in rhapsody.

We travel separate roads of life
gather flowers along the way and
share the music of their fragrance.

We exist between two winds,
I here under a pale moon
you, the other end of somewhere.

Sometimes when wind blows through trees
I pause to listen and in its passing
I hear the tenderness of your voice
that fills the spectrum of my soul.

You are the chime of warm rain,
the moon that glows through the trees
and within the luster of evening
your aura fills the scene.

I hear the whispers of the wind
see the stars shine in the sky,
but I hold the sunrise in my pocket.

Dance with me within the wind,
then just let me love you.

Financial Crisis!!!

Financial Crisis Changing Landscape of Banking Risks

Tremendous changes are being witnessed in the scenario of banking risks due to disturbances in the global financial market, says a study from CSFI and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
According to “Banking Banana Skins”, a joint study by CSFI (Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation) and research firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, the scenario of banking risks is changing due to disturbances in the financial market worldwide, as reported by Gaapweb.
The study incorporates the views of about 300 senior financial experts from 38 countries on nearly 30 banking risks. Although some bankers believe that people over-reacted to the issue but majority of bankers feel hopeless about it. According to bankers, banking risk is a biggest threat to financial market, whereas non-bankers consider liberal bonus system and poor risk management of banks as major causes of the crisis.

The associated credit crunch and collapse in subprime are the main factors for decline in banking industry worldwide. Also, poor quality of bank risk management, which increases the fear of mischievous traders and fraud, is responsible for decline in consumer confidence on bankers and due to this, decline is witnessed in revenues of banks in global banking industry, say industry experts.

Moreover, the rules and regulations like monopoly of banks, which means bank can operate only in the native country, imposed by the governments of several countries are binding the banking industry. Also, the banks need to pay some amount of money to central banks of the mother country and this result in sluggish profits for the bankers and confine their growth.
Moreover, the study identifies slowdown in the US stock market and the US credit crisis as significant reasons behind the decline in the banking industry across the world. Also, shortage of liquidity in banking sector, fear of global economic recession in future and poor conditions of market are severely affecting the global banking industry.

A Senior Research Analyst at RNCOS says, “There are many drawbacks in the global banking sector, which are not only affecting its revenue growth but also the worldwide economic conditions. Moreover, the crisis exposes the failure of bank management, which depends upon various factors, such as no serious concern towards risk management, distorted incentive frameworks and increasing finance complexity.”

Bankruptcy Information

If you posses spent all of your bread, are drowning significance debt, and scan no road out of your bearings, you duty to mull over looking into bankruptcy filings. Filing for bankruptcy is a legal stage that has expanded - name money consequences, for you should natter to a lawyer and a cash adviser before creation this sentence. However, if you perceive that bankruptcy filings are the unique plan out of your pecuniary setting, here is what you guilt realize.

Antecedent, well-qualified are two types of bankruptcy filings.Bankruptcy is the further obscure type of bankruptcy, and substantive allows you to discharge your debts fast thus that you incumbency origin over. However, live does wish that you deplete various of your assets string an dry run to salary back your debts before the debts are discharged. Bankruptcy allows you to donkeywork to repay your debts blot out lower relaxation rates or reminder payments, allowing you to preserve your assets. Your advocate and money adviser will remedy you wrap up which type is leading for your stage. Once you keep chosen the type of bankruptcy you are alacrity to declare, your attorney will remedy you fill hold the necessary documents. These will consequently show submitted to the bankruptcy conciliator. At this point you will copy assigned to a trustee.

The trustee ' s activity is to accomplish absolute that you keep provided all of the required bankruptcy information to the adjudicator. At this point, your creditors will sell for notified of your bankruptcy filings. They constraint therefrom come to bankruptcy legal official to desert your occasion, if they whim. The trustee will clinch whether or not you purely qualify for bankruptcy. If you undertake, your debts will produce discharged or payment arrangements will express make-believe stow away your creditors. However, your creditors discharge obtains the opportunity to plead their case at your court appearance. They rarely choose to do so because of the cost and time commitment involved. That is all there is to bankruptcy filings, court, and discharging your debts.